Hampton Eases Grades Standard

HAMPTON — The Hampton School Board voted Wednesday to make it easier for students to get good grades beginning this fall.

In a vote of 6-1 the board approved a plan that lowers the system's grading scale and puts it in line with those in neighboring school systems.

The current scale, one of the toughest in the region, puts students at a disadvantage when it comes to applying for college and scholarships, because colleges treat letter grades the same, regardless of the grading scale used, officials say.

Danny Goad was the only one on the seven-member board to vote against the plan, which he has called a ``dumbing down'' of standards.

"I cannot support a grading policy that lowers expectations," he said at the Wednesday night meeting. "Our credibility with parents is at risk."

No other board members commented on the policy at the meeting. However, they favored the measure in previous board discussions.

Superintendent Billy Cannaday said he wanted the change because parents have complained that students in neighboring communities are getting better grades for the same work.

But the lowered grading scale gives parents a false security that their children "are working at a higher level than they really are," Goad said.

The new scale lowers the passing grade for an A from 95 to 93, a B from 87 to 85, a C from 78 to 75, a D from 70 to 68 and an F from 69 to 67.

Compared with other school systems, the change puts Hampton somewhere near the middle in terms of difficulty, school officials say.